Old Friends
by ohtheclevernessofme
Summary: Being the chief engineer of the Andromeda has its disadvantages
1. Suspicious Behavior

Alright guys, this is my first Andromeda fic, so say about it what you will! I guess I should prolly explain up front that since Harper's my favorite character, a good deal of the story will be about events surrounding him...though the rest of the crew will most definitely be in it as well. The story is set right about in the same time as where the episodes are in season 4 right now...on or around Machinery of the Mind...  
  
Now I also need to say that while I absolutely love Andromeda, I haven't seen every single episode ever aired, so please forgive if I make a mistake or two in that sense...I'll try to look up anything I'm not sure about ahead of time...but if I can't find it...that's just the way it goes, hehe...  
  
Oh yeah, and fanfiction.net seems to hate me, but occasionally you're gonna see excessive periods or stuff like that, I'll try to catch it before I actually post it through though.  
  
Hope you all enjoy!  
  
********  
  
"How much longer could this possibly take?" Seamus Harper whined crankily. "I don't know about you, but this place is just too depressing for words, I need to get off this rock!"  
  
"Just be patient," Telemachus Rhade replied calmly from beside him. "Dylan and Beka will be back as soon as possible, until they contact us, there's nothing we can do."  
  
"It's been over two hours," Harper shot back, pointedly. "They shoulda been done by now."  
  
"Dylan requested three hours," Rhade stated quickly. "If we haven't heard from him by then, we will follow his orders, return to the Andromeda, and decide how to continue from there."  
  
"Great," Harper muttered flatly, "Exactly how I'd hoped to be spending my afternoon..."  
  
Rhade offered no response, however, and Harper fell silent as the two continued to keep an eye out for anything suspicious. Cimmerii was by no stretch of the imagination, easy on the eyes. Instead, Harper couldn't help but be reminded of Earth. The dilapidated buildings, rubble and debris in the streets, people wearing whatever tattered material they could get their hands on, so long as it looked warm...it made his stomach turn, feeling only sick pity for this planet's inhabitants, mixed with ashamed relief, that he no longer had to dwell in such surroundings.  
  
Harper could feel eyes on he and Rhade as the two continued silently up the street, though he tried to refrain from meeting the gazes of any of the people nearest them...you never knew who would take it the wrong way, and a fight was something they didn't need right now. They were staying close enough to the Maru to play it safe, but, as Dylan requested, they were keeping an eye out as well, for anything that seemed out of place. The reason for their presence here didn't quite seem to sit well with any of the Andromeda's crew, and as such, they were all prepared for the unexpected...whatever it may be.  
  
Less than two days back, a transmission for Beka was received, and the sender hadn't cared to wait for privacy. He stated his business to the occupants of the bridge, which had included the entire senior crew at that time. Needless to say, Beka had been less than pleased, and her mood only became worse as the man's message became clear.  
  
The name he'd given them was Roman Delacroix, and according to Rommie, that at least, was true. He wasn't exactly a big name in his little part of the universe, but he managed to secure himself a nice piece of land on the otherwise decrepit planet of Cimmerii, as well as a regular flow of trade. The planet had almost no natural resources left, but in exchange for the weapons that Roman's crew manufactured, he would receive what was necessary in order to survive. Of course, distributing this wealth of food, water, clothing and other luxuries that many take for granted was another matter entirely, and one that would only be considered for a very expensive price; not in currency, at that.  
  
His identity and status on Cimmerii was all Rommie could confirm for them, however, as the reason for his contacting Beka was quite sudden and unexpected.  
  
Harper stifled a laugh as he remembered the tall blonde's expression when Roman had delivered his request.  
  
********  
  
"I will not!" Beka cried angrily, her fierce eyes glaring at Roman's image onscreen. "Whatever raw deal my father cut you, it has nothing to do with me!"  
  
"I'm afraid it has everything to do with you, Captain Valentine," Roman replied, unsuccessfully hiding a smirk as he spoke. "It is your responsibility to take care of what your father no longer can, and that includes the money he never repaid."  
  
"Why are you only coming to Beka for this now?" Dylan spoke up from beside his first officer. "It's been years since that money was borrowed-"  
  
"Stolen," Roman interrupted curtly. Dylan paused only half a second before continuing.  
  
"What I'm trying to figure out," he stated seriously, "Is why this is the first Beka is hearing from you...it's quite a large sum of money. I would think you would have tried to collect much sooner."  
  
"I only collect on my debts when it is absolutely necessary," Roman stated nonchalantly. "And my personal reasons for needing this money promptly are mine alone."  
  
"And what exactly are you meaning when you say 'promptly'?" Dylan asked. "A month? Two?"  
  
"Not that it matters," Beka muttered darkly, clearly intending to be as uncooperative as possible.  
  
"No of course not," Roman smiled, ignoring Beka's words, keeping his gaze on Dylan. "I would be needing it much sooner, no later than the end of this week, most definitely."  
  
"What?" Dylan and Beka exclaimed in unison.  
  
"You've gotta be kidding!" Harper spoke up from his console, unable to remain silent in the discussion any longer. "You're asking for an amount of money that could buy about fifty nova bombs on the black market and you want it in two days?"  
  
"Fifty-seven, to be exact." Rommie supplied for him quickly. "In the Cimmerii Galaxy, at least."  
  
"Whatever, the point is it's not enough time," Harper said quickly.  
  
"No the point is none of that matters," Beka stated angrily. "'Cause I'm not paying you anything."  
  
"Fine," Roman replied a bit too quickly, his eyes narrowing. "But I assure you it will become known, that the first officer of the Commonwealth's flagship refuses to pay her debts."  
  
"It's not my debt," Beka shot back angrily, "It's my father's, and go ahead, tell the universe for all I care. It won't make any difference."  
  
"Actually, you might want to reconsider," Rhade spoke up calmly from his station. "We do have enough support so that this probably won't do too much damage if word of it started getting around, but it could sew the first seeds of distrust, which will only build up over time."  
  
"Who asked your opinion?" Beka asked icily. "And besides if anyone asks we tell them the truth."  
  
"That might work," Roman stated, looking quite pleased for a man who wasn't going to get his money. "But...stories can be...exaggerated..." he trailed off, a small smirk playing on one corner of his mouth.  
  
"So, what you're saying is, you'll lie?" Dylan asked knowingly.  
  
"Not at all, Captain Hunt," Roman replied innocently. "But I cannot stop the way rumors spread, and grow...into very ugly things. They're horrid, wouldn't you agree? In the past they've ruined lives..."  
  
Dylan glanced around at the rest of his crew. Beka remained stiff, her expression defiant and cold, while the others were simply at a loss for suggestions.  
  
"Fine," Dylan said at last. "Can we at least meet with you, to discuss the matter in person?"  
  
"What! Dylan what are you-?"  
  
"Beka, it's just to talk," Dylan cut her off, his expression serious. He didn't need something like this ruining anything for them, not when they'd come so far.  
  
"Talk about what? I'm not paying him, even if I had the money - which by the way we have no way of coming up with that quickly, and besides I-"  
  
"This doesn't feel right," Trance spoke up then.  
  
Both Dylan and Beka stared at the golden alien for a brief moment, uncertain.  
  
"Do you know something we don't?" he asked seriously.  
  
"Nothing," Trance replied honestly. "I just believe something about this feels wrong."  
  
"Join the club," Harper remarked sardonically.  
  
********  
  
Roman had been most willing to have Beka and Dylan meet with him planetside, to further discuss the issue. Not entirely trusting the situation, Dylan asked Harper and Rhade to keep watch while he and Beka were in their meeting.  
  
"This sucks," Harper spoke up again as they continued their walk around the area, "I'd feel a lot better if Rommie were here..."  
  
"You know she couldn't come, nor could Trance," Rhade stated. "The people of this world would be more of a danger to them than to us."  
  
"Rommie could take 'em" Harper replied with something close to pride in his voice. He had, after all, created the android that graced each and every pleasant dream he had.  
  
"That's not the issue," Rhade said quickly. "We don't want to bring on any unnecessary attention. The people of this world are naturally suspicious of anything that was built, instead of born. The reason their world is in such disarray, after all, was all the fault of machines."  
  
"Rommie's not just a machine," Harper stated matter-of-factly. "She thinks, feels..."  
  
"All that is irrelevant, Mr. Harper," Rhade interrupted curtly. "All it would take is for just one person to realize what she is...it would start a panic. And with all the black market trade going on here, they're bound to have something that would tell them she isn't human."  
  
Harper opened his mouth to interject, but Rhade pushed on.  
  
"It's better this way, Mr. Harper. As I said, we don't need the unnecessary attention that either Rommie or Trance would bring..."  
  
"Yeah well then what about the attention you're drawing?" Harper asked snidely. "Cause all these people sure aren't staring at me as we walk by. If we couldn't bring an android or a ...Trance...then how is a Neitzchean any better?"  
  
"As much as this place must resemble Earth, it isn't," Rhade said simply. "While you spent your childhood hating Neitzcheans and Magog, these people spent theirs hating machines. Besides, we couldn't send you here by yourself, no matter how well you'd fit in..." he trailed off, a tiny smirk barely showing through.  
  
"Hysterical," Harper remarked flatly. "Really, you're a one-man comedy act, you oughta go on tour."  
  
Rhade opened his mouth to reply, but was abruptly cut off at the sounds of shouting which erupted from a nearby alley. Exchanging a brief glance, Harper pulled out his gauss gun while Rhade charged his forcelance, and the two immediately started towards the disturbance, keeping out a cautious eye as they went.  
  
"Get down!" Rhade cried suddenly as the sounds of gunfire filled the air. Harper obliged without hesitation, shielding his head as he ducked down behind a large pile of rubble. Rhade was beside him in half a second, as the bullets flew through the air above them.  
  
"Looks like we walked in on a war!" Harper yelled to be heard over the noise. "Don't suppose they'll let us through if we explain we aren't part of it..."  
  
"I'd imagine this isn't uncommon for these people," Rhade yelled back.  
  
"Yeah, I guess not," Harper replied somberly, remembering all that he himself had to do in order to survive on Earth. This place was feeling more like home by the minute. "So, what's the plan?" he asked hopefully.  
  
"Get back to the Maru," Rhade stated quickly, then added, "without getting shot."  
  
"Good, thanks for clarifying that," Harper stated sardonically.  
  
"Let's go," Rhade said suddenly, and before Harper could protest, the larger man had jumped up from behind their pile of rubble, and let loose with a surge of covering fire. Harper scrambled quickly to his feet, following Rhade and firing into the barrage of bullets still whizzing through the air, but something immediately felt wrong. The moment they had jumped back into view, the firing around them increased, and he couldn't see who was responsible, where were all the people?  
  
He put on a burst of speed to catch up to the Neitzchean, who was trying to get towards the nearest corner...to the docking area where they'd left the Maru, but it was no good, their was too much firepower and not enough cover.  
  
"Fall back!" Rhade yelled fiercely, and Harper made no argument, heading back to the far side of the street. They moved further and further away from the source of the fight, and yet the bullets still came. A pile of rocks wasn't what they needed now, and Rhade realized this, leading them towards one of the few buildings still standing. Harper was less than thrilled as he ran through the crooked stone doorway and into the darkness beyond, but at least they were out of the immediate fight for the moment.  
  
Trying to calm his rapid breathing, still holding tensely to his weapon, Harper waited until Rhade turned away from the door to face him.  
  
"Something you want to tell me?" he asked, his blue eyes flashing.  
  
"What?" Rhade replied, confused. "What do you mean?"  
  
"I mean they weren't really aiming at me out there, but you were being overrun.I was covering you, not defending myself! Nothing was heading my way, that's what I mean, why were they trying to kill you?" Harper spat out quickly, glancing nervously towards the door as more firing erupted from outside, definitely closer.  
  
Rhade's eyes squinted in concentration, before realization seemed to dawn on him.  
  
"You're right, I was drawing more fire than you."  
  
"Try all of it," Harper shot back curtly. "So who'd you piss off last time you were here and exactly how bad was it?"  
  
"I've never been here before," Rhade replied simply.  
  
"Well then got any ideas on who might wanna take you out?" Harper asked.  
  
"We all have our enemies," Rhade stated indifferently.  
  
"Great," Harper muttered, tensing and raising his weapon as the fight once again drew closer to their position. "Well if they really are after you...they're taking their time with doing it. Do you think maybe they didn't see us come in here?"  
  
"Possibly," Rhade replied quickly. "Or maybe there's another way in that we're unaware of..." he trailed off, slowly beginning to turn, cautiously scanning the darkness behind them. They could see nothing aside from burnt and broken debris in what could only have been the lobby of a hotel one very long time ago.  
  
"Yeah," Harper nodded faintly, feeling the beginning twinges of dread in his gut. "I'd say there are at least three or four more ways into this place...and that's not accounting for the possibility that there could be holes blown through some areas...they could be coming from anywhere..."  
  
The gunfire nearest the entrance they'd come through grew louder once more; they were closing in on them.  
  
Rhade seemed to consider his options for a brief moment, before raising his forcelance again.  
  
"We're not going back out that way. Even if they didn't see us come in, there's no chance they wouldn't see us leave. I'm going to check down this way," he said, indicating with a gesture the hallway to their left.  
  
"Rhade, they could be anywhere in this building right now!" Harper tried to explain. "You don't understand, that's how these places were built, so you could get in from any side..."  
  
"That still doesn't change the fact that we need to get out, and we need to do so now."  
  
Harper opened his mouth to argue, but shut it quickly, realizing there was no point; Rhade was right. He thought about suggesting contacting the Andromeda, but pushed the idea aside as well. If these people had anything with them to try and locate either he or Rhade, a transmission to the ship would definitely aid their attackers in finding them. If they could just make it back to the Maru...  
  
"Now," Rhade began again. "I'm going to check down this corridor, if it's clear, I'll signal for you to follow. Just stay alert and keep quiet."  
  
"Gee, thanks for the tip," Harper replied scathingly, already scanning the opposite side of the corridor while Rhade started forward.  
  
Less than a minute had passed before he could no longer see Rhade, but all he could do was wait, hearing only the all-too-close gunfire as the seconds ticked by.  
  
After several minutes passed, however, Harper was worried. Rhade wouldn't have gone too far if he was supposed to get a signal back to him without alerting anyone else that might be in hearing range...something he would have done by now, Harper was certain, unless he was prevented...  
  
Deciding he had no other choice, Harper quickly stepped to the opposite wall, before slowly starting down the corridor after Rhade, when a heavy hand clapped down over his shoulder from behind.  
  
Barely containing his cry of surprise, Harper spun around in an instant, wrenching free from the grasp and bringing up his gun, only to feel a flood of welcome relief.  
  
"Rhade...you scared the crap outta me!" he said unevenly, breathing quickly, before a questioning look crossed his features. "Hey how'd you get behind me anyway? What happened to the signal?"  
  
"No time to explain," Rhade said curtly, motioning for Harper to follow him as he started back to the right. "But you were correct, this place is full of openings that probably shouldn't be there."  
  
"Did you find a way out?" Harper asked immediately, hopeful...though a definite feeling of unease began growing within him...something didn't feel right all of a sudden.  
  
"Yes, hurry," Rhade replied, and fell silent.  
  
Harper moved along swiftly through several corridors, trying furiously to figure out what was wrong, but was unable to put a finger on it...though as they made their way along at such a quick pace, he noticed that Rhade seemed to know his way around all of a sudden. They came to a cracked opening in one of the walls after several moments more, however, and he came to a stop behind the Neitzchean.  
  
"This way," Rhade ordered, before quickly stepping through the opening. It was in that moment, that Harper abruptly realized what was wrong. The gunfire...it was gone. There was only silence outside.  
  
Suddenly overwhelmed with a very bad feeling, Harper took one step back from the opening, unsure of what to do. Rhade was trying to get them out of there, he should follow him...but something inside was telling him not to...  
  
"Harper, come on," Rhade's voice floated through to him as the larger man motioned to him from the opening. "Hurry."  
  
Harper hesitated.  
  
"Why do you think they stopped shooting?" he asked, trying not to sound suspicious.  
  
"Obviously the fight ended, now move!" Rhade replied, impatiently.  
  
"But what about-?"  
  
"Mr. Harper, we don't have time for this!" Rhade interrupted tersely. The nervous engineer remained where he was, however, wanting a bit more assurance.  
  
"How'd you get behind me?" Harper repeated his question from earlier, his expression one of uncertainty. He was determined not to follow the larger man any further until he had an answer.  
  
But instead of replying, Rhade's eyes narrowed in undisguised anger, before he pushed himself forward through the crack again.  
  
"Rhade! What's going on?" Harper cried, jumping backwards to keep some distance between them. The larger man gave no indication that he intended on replying though, and started for Harper the moment he cleared the hole. Cursing vehemently under his breath, the small human turned on the spot, before setting off as fast as he could run, in the opposite direction. He didn't know what was wrong with Rhade, but he didn't exactly get the feeling that the Neitzchean wanted to sit down and chat about it.  
  
Reaching the first corner, Harper barely slowed as he skidded roughly around it, continuing on with a burst of speed. He didn't need to look back to know the larger man was behind him, he could hear him all too clearly.  
  
"Come back here kludge!" an angry cry called out to him, which only caused Harper to run faster. Rhade would never call him that. He didn't know what had happened to the Neitzchean in the few moments they'd been separated, but he hoped he could get out of here in one piece so he could find out.  
  
Breathing heavily and wiping sweat from his eyes with the back of his hand, Harper turned the next corner, seeing the entrance they'd come in through only halfway up the corridor and put on a final burst of speed. He still heard no gunfire from outside, and if the area truly was clear, this was his fastest way back to the Maru. There was no guarantee, but this was about the best chance he had, given the options.  
  
Barely five feet from his escape route, however, Harper skidded to an abrupt halt, raising his gun again, as Rhade came out of a side passageway, blocking his path.  
  
"Get out of my way," Harper shouted, trying to mask the fear in his voice and stepping backwards so as not to be in easy reach of the Neitzchean. "I don't know what happened to you, but I promise to get you help...don't make me shoot," Harper pleaded, as the larger man seemed unconcerned by the gun aimed at him, continuing towards the human.  
  
"I'm not the one in need of help," Rhade stated evenly, leering at the smaller man as he advanced steadily. Harper took several steps back once more, wondering if he could make it back to the crack in the wall before Rhade could cut him off again. At least outside there'd be more room to work with.  
  
Rhade was closing the distance between them quickly now, and Harper knew he couldn't shoot.this was his crewmate, not an enemy...he had to help him. Once again he started to turn, ready to break into another run, when without warning, he was grabbed from behind, and his gun was knocked from his hands.  
  
His arms were immediately pinned to his sides as a large hand was clapped over his mouth, and he immediately began to struggle against his captor. He realized with a growing sense of hopelessness how futile his efforts were, however, as the grip on him didn't give in the slightest.  
  
Rhade walked towards him again, a triumphant expression on his face as he reached into his pocket, pulling out something that made Harper's insides turn to ice. He wriggled furiously in the unknown person's grasp, but was unable to do anything to prevent it, as Rhade lifted the injector to Harper's neck.  
  
His struggles weakened instantly as the strong substance hit his bloodstream. Harper could do nothing to fight it as his eyelids flickered involuntarily shut, and unconsciousness claimed him. 


	2. The First Friend

Parisindy ~ Harperchondriacs? lol.sounds fun! I'll have to check that site out sometime :)  
  
Luna Sealeaf ~ I know it was kinda short, wasn't it? Hehehe...I'll try to make them longer when I can...  
  
Littleredhead, X3, JC6, Simone, AKAJipster, Sparkyone, and Meg ~ Thanx so so much for the replies! I really appreciate them :)  
  
Now...next chapter:  
  
********  
  
Sometime later, feeling began to return to Seamus Harper, and it didn't take long for him to wish it hadn't. His head was pounding, as if his brain wanted release from the confines of his skull, and his body felt tired and achy all over. He slowly opened his eyes on his dim surroundings, pushing himself up from the floor where he'd been lying.  
  
"It's freakin' freezing in here," he muttered under his breath, which he was dismayed to realize, he could see as he exhaled. He began rubbing his hands together to try and generate some warmth. Cimmerii wasn't exactly the warmest of planets, if that's even where he still was, but it wasn't this cold. Harper hadn't exactly been dressed for winter, having only a light brown jacket over his t-shirt. The room he was in now felt about as warm as a meat locker, and it was also about as decorative as one. There were no windows, no furniture...four metallic walls, and a door with a very complicated locking mechanism next to it. Harper instinctively glanced down to see his tools were missing, which wasn't all that surprising given the circumstances in which he'd come to be here.  
  
Rhade. What had happened to him? They were barely separated for ten minutes and he suddenly becomes the schizophrenic Neitzschean. Harper couldn't even begin to guess what was wrong, but he would very much have liked to know why he was dragged into it...if someone was after Rhade, they'd obviously gotten to him...why stick around for him too?  
  
Shivering slightly, Harper started to walk around the room, heading first for the door. Never hurt to check, after all. But as he examined the electronic lock, which was roughly the size of his hand if he spread out his fingers, he knew there wasn't much chance of getting past it, and without his tools, he couldn't jack in either.  
  
Pulling his jacket tighter around him, Harper moved away from the door, now just wanting to stay warm. He wondered how long he was going to be in here before someone realized he was awake. From what he could see, there were no cameras, and the walls were so smooth and flat he had no idea how he was getting his oxygen, but he had the impression that if he tried shouting or making noise of any kind, it would be a wasted effort.  
  
After what felt like hours, but in reality was probably more like twenty minutes, Harper could no longer feel his fingers, and his hands wouldn't stop shaking no matter how hard he pushed them under his arms. His teeth had begun to chatter as well, and finally he gave up walking around.  
  
Leaning against the nearest wall, Harper let himself slide to the floor as the temperature seemed to drop rapidly. He wrapped his arms around his legs, rocking back and forth and trying to calm the shudders now running through his body.  
  
He wondered if Rhade...or whoever else might have put him here, intended to let him freeze to death...but then why take him in the first place?  
  
Shoving his chin against his knees and trying to keep his mind focused, Harper could only wait, trembling from the now burning cold in the air, and hope that someone would come for him soon...  
  
********  
  
"So let me get this straight," Beka Valentine said testily, her day going from bad to horribly bad. "You heard a fight break out in a nearby alley, you went to check it out, soon there was gunfire everywhere, you took shelter in an abandoned building, you left Harper alone-"  
  
"I went ahead to make sure the area was clear," Rhade interrupted stiffly.  
  
"Yeah, okay," Beka waved the statement away, unimpressed. "You leave Harper alone, end up getting cut off from the passage you would have taken to get back to him by several of your so-called attackers, and when you finally lose them and make your way back, he's gone, and you find his gun on the floor."  
  
"Yes," Rhade stated curtly, his anger over Beka's words mingling with the shame he felt over losing his crewmate. After looking through the former hotel and all of the surrounding area for Harper and coming up empty, he'd met up with the others at the Maru as planned, and let them know what had happened.  
  
"Beka take it easy," Dylan said calmly. "We're not placing blame here, let's just concentrate on finding out where Harper is and who took him."  
  
"Isn't it obvious?" Beka stated quickly, crossing her arms over her chest, indifferently. "That slimeball Roman Delacroix is behind this, I know it."  
  
"We don't know that for certain..." Dylan began, ever the diplomat.  
  
"Oh come on!" Beka argued. "He has us come to meet with him, to discuss that ridiculous debt, on a planet where he knows we're not gonna bring Rommie or Trance with us, leaving Rhade and Harper alone."  
  
Dylan opened his mouth to interject, but Beka was caught up in her rant now, and pushed on with it, her eyes flashing.  
  
"They're suddenly fired upon, and most of it, according to Rhade here, was aimed at him. But in the end he's alive and Harper's missing...don't you see? The gunfire wasn't meant to kill Rhade, it was meant to take Harper alive, and now someone has."  
  
"Look, I'm not arguing with you," Dylan finally got his turn to speak. "In fact, I was thinking the same thing...but what doesn't make sen-"  
  
"What doesn't make sense is, why?" Rhade cut in suddenly. "If it is Delacroix who's behind this, what would he need Harper for? Unless there's a specific reason...there are a great many engineers who would gladly work for someone like Roman Delacroix."  
  
"Thank you," Dylan nodded, showing Rhade had guessed his point. "What would he need our engineer for?"  
  
"Well who else could it be?" Beka asked softly, her anger seeming to grow. Dylan saw her fuse reaching its end.  
  
"Beka we're on the same side here," he stated evenly. "I'm not disagreeing with you in that Roman Delacroix seems like the perfect suspect here...but we do need proof. We will find Harper, and believe me I intend on speaking with Mr. Delacroix the second we're back on the Andromeda..."  
  
"Back on the...? Dylan we can't leave!" Beka exclaimed suddenly. "What if- "  
  
"We'll be back, trust me. I have a feeling that our new friend is going to cooperate with us, whether he wants to or not."  
  
"He'd better," Beka stated menacingly, hesitating for a moment, before finally moving to the pilot's chair, and beginning to power up the ship.  
  
"Rommie," Dylan called out, fingering the communicator in his neck.  
  
"Here Dylan," came the immediate reply.  
  
"We're on our way back, but Harper is missing, and it doesn't appear to be by choice. I want you to try and locate him, see if his homing device is still active. If that doesn't work, try contacting him, I want to know if he's still on this planet."  
  
"Affirmative."  
  
"Let's just hope he's nearby," Dylan said quietly, holding loosely to the railing above the pilot's seat.  
  
"If a ship had left Andromeda would have seen it," Beka stated confidently.  
  
"I agree," Dylan smirked, "Just better to be sure..."  
  
"Delacroix," Rhade spoke up curiously then. "Why do you believe he is going to help us? I'm assuming we don't owe him the money, as Captain Valentine hasn't killed anyone yet..."  
  
"Hey!" Beka cried out with mock indignation and Rhade merely grinned down at her, as he stood beside Dylan  
  
"No, we don't owe him anything," Dylan confirmed. "His story about Beka's father's debt seems to be completely fabricated. He couldn't produce one shred of proof to show anything worth that much had ever been stolen from him..."  
  
"And believe me if my father ever had come across that much money," Beka interjected quickly, "I would've known...not to mention taken my fair share, repaid my debts and had a nice early retirement."  
  
"He also couldn't give us any specific information on how it was stolen, nor was there anything to show an investigation was conducted at that time," Dylan added.  
  
"So this was all a set-up, to get us here," Rhade stated.  
  
"To get Harper here, at least," Beka spoke up, darkly.  
  
"Don't think I haven't thought of that," Dylan replied calmly. "But it was quite an exorbitant amount of money he was asking for, and I wouldn't put it past anyone as deep into black market trade as Delacroix is to come up with a scheme as ridiculous as this one in hopes of a payoff."  
  
"But how will this convince him to work with us?" Rhade asked, skeptically.  
  
"Well if he wants to stay in business," Dylan began, beginning to smile, "I'd say it'd be a good idea for him to cooperate. Otherwise the Commonwealth might not go so easy on him. He tried to pull a scam...a very expensive scam, on one of my officers and while we were discussing matters, another member of my goes missing."  
  
"So if he doesn't want word to get around that the Commonwealth is breathing down his neck...effectively stopping a good deal of his business..."  
  
"Exactly," Dylan nodded. "His organization may look neat enough on paper, but if there were an investigation into his business dealings, it would reveal enough illegal activity to shut him down for good..."  
  
"Not a bad idea," Beka spoke up brightly from her seat below them. "What d'ya say we do that anyway after we get Harper back?"  
  
Dylan let out a small laugh and opened his mouth to reply, when Rommie's voice suddenly came through his communicator.  
  
"Dylan?"  
  
"Go ahead Rommie."  
  
"I'm not able to establish a link with Harper's homing device, though it might be possible if I were closer. I've also attempted to contact him via his data port, but there was no response. Something is blocking the connection, though I am unable to determine the source of the disturbance."  
  
"That is just great," Dylan muttered, frustrated. "Alright Rommie, we'll be there soon. I plan to speak with Delacroix about this when I arrive, so wait for us on the bridge. Dylan out."  
  
"Nothing?" Beka asked as she heard him end the transmission, her voice showing she already knew the answer.  
  
"This is just beginning Beka," Dylan assured her. He stepped back from the railing then, collecting his thoughts, but Rhade moved with him.  
  
"Captain Hunt," he began in a hushed tone, his expression grim. "I wish to apologize for the situation...I should not have let this happen."  
  
"I'm not blaming you Rhade..."  
  
"I blame myself, captain. You had me there with Mr. Harper so he wouldn't be alone, but that's exactly how I left him."  
  
"You were looking for a way out of a dangerous situation," Dylan argued, not wanting to waste time on this.  
  
"I should have had him come with me."  
  
"Telemachus," Dylan said, realizing the Neitzchean was not going to go easy on himself. "You did what you thought was best. If Harper had been with you, and the person who took him wanted him badly enough, you might have been injured, or worse. What I need from you now is your full attention towards helping us find Harper so we can get him back."  
  
Rhade held the captain's gaze for a brief moment, before nodding curtly.  
  
"Yes sir."  
  
"Good," Dylan replied, returning the nod. He turned back towards the front, and saw the familiar sight of the Andromeda Ascendant, gleaming back at him. It was time to get to work.  
  
********  
  
How many hours had passed? Harper had no idea. He remained huddled tightly against one wall of this freezing prison, wishing for someone...anyone...to come for him. As the seconds continued to tick past, he had to keep convincing himself that whoever put him here wouldn't leave him, there had to be a reason that he was taken. But as he couldn't feel his feet inside his boots any longer, and any part of his skin that touched the air felt burnt from the scalding cold, it had become increasingly harder to keep from letting panic set in.  
  
He wondered again what had happened to Rhade, why he'd been brought here, if Dylan and Beka were alright...for all he knew the whole crew could be here now, somewhere in this...place...  
  
When at last he heard a noise near the door, Harper raised his head quickly, half of him filling with dread, while the other half felt only relief at the prospect of getting out of the cold. As he recognized the sound of a rather large lock sliding back from its place, he slowly pushed himself up, using the wall for support. His whole body was still shaking violently.  
  
The door opened, sliding upwards, and two men who Harper didn't recognize entered the room.  
  
"Wh-who are you?" the smaller man managed to utter through teeth that were clenched to hopefully prevent them from chattering. He eyed the men nervously. They were both much taller than he was, with dark blonde hair and gray eyes. Their facial features were just different enough that they weren't completely identical, but their build, frame, height, weight and just about everything else seemed to match perfectly to one another.  
  
Without a word, the two advanced on the freezing engineer, who was too weak in his present state to put up much of a fight. Nevertheless he had no intentions of going easily; as they took hold of his arms he tried with all he had to wrench free, but it was about as effective as trying to fly by waving a feather in the air.  
  
They had no trouble pulling him quickly into the hall, and Harper nearly found himself involuntarily relaxing in their grip, due to the much welcomed heat that engulfed him outside of his cell. Feeling began to return at once to his fingers and toes, which were tingling uncomfortably from the sudden temperature change. But as they forced him forward through the brightly lit passageway, he quickly resumed his struggle, doubting he would want to go wherever it was they were taking him.  
  
They took several turns down so many identical silver hallways that Harper soon couldn't remember how many they'd been through, until finally they dragged him into another smooth-surfaced room. This one had a heavy table in the center of the floor, with two chairs on either side.  
  
"Let me go!" Harper yelled, grunting with the effort of trying to break away from the grasp they had on him, but they moved forward, unfazed by his resistance, forcing him roughly into one of the chairs.  
  
"What's going on?" Harper spat irately. "Why am I here?"  
  
But no response was given, the two just continued to work in silence. While one of the men held Harper down in the seat, the other jerked the engineer's arms behind the chair, tying his wrists tightly, before they quickly stood and headed wordlessly for the exit.  
  
"Hey wait!" Harper cried after them, but they paid no attention, and as they stepped out of sight, he heard a lock sliding into place. Once again, he was alone.  
  
Still quite cold, as well as exhausted and scared, Harper immediately began twisting his arms, having little hope he would actually be able to loosen the bonds, and only ended up feeling as if they had tightened around his wrists. He sighed in frustration and anger, and lashed out with one leg, kicking the bottom of the table in front of him, before leaning his head against the high back of the chair and closing his eyes. He wanted this to end, why was he even here? It couldn't be Rhade who was truly behind this, if anything, Harper believed the Neitzchean was being used...controlled, somehow. Though how this had happened in the few short minutes they'd been separated in that abandoned hotel, the engineer couldn't say...  
  
When he heard the lock on the door sliding open again just a few moments later, Harper tensed in his seat. At least he wouldn't be waiting long this time. Leaning forward as best he could against his restraints, Harper peered to his left, towards the entrance, and his eyes fell upon a very familiar form.  
  
"Rhade," Harper began nervously, not exactly relieved at the sight of his crewmate. "What's going on? Why are we here?"  
  
The larger man strode briskly across the room, coming to a stop less than five feet from Harper. There was no emotion in his eyes as he glared down at the engineer.  
  
"Seamus Harper," he began, evenly. "You're here because my employer requested your presence...and you will obey him until you are no longer needed."  
  
For a brief moment, Harper could only stare at him in undisguised confusion, before finding his voice.  
  
"What are you talking about? Your employer? I thought we worked for the same guy...and what do you mean my presence was requested? What's happened to you Rhade? Who's doing-"  
  
Harper stopped abruptly as a painful crack went through his jaw, by means of Rhade's backhand. He grimaced in pain as his head hit the back of the chair, before slowly raising his gaze to the Neitzschean again.  
  
"You'll do what is asked of you, or you won't live to regret it," Rhade stated threateningly.  
  
"You're not the first Neitzschean to say that to me, ya' know," Harper remarked, defiantly, before his expression became one of determination. "Rhade please, this can't be you...you just have to fight it...someone's controlling you, they must be..."  
  
At this, the larger man's eyes seemed to gleam, and a smile broke out across his face.  
  
"This can't be me? Oh but it is, I assure you, and I want what should already be mine. The Andromeda."  
  
Harper narrowed his eyes, bewildered.  
  
"You want the Andromeda...but...but you work on her...you...this doesn't make sense..." he trailed off, looking up to see the Neitzschean staring back at him in smug silence. "Who are you?" Harper asked.  
  
Looking as though he'd been waiting for the question to be asked, the larger man stepped forward two paces, his humorless eyes leering down on the small engineer.  
  
"My name is Gaheris Rhade. First officer and soon to be captain of the Andromeda Ascendant." 


	3. The Second Friend

OKAY GUYS JUST READ THIS BEFORE GETTING INTO THE CHAPTER!! Just wanted to warn you ahead of time that there's a bit of detail in this chapter that might make some people feel uncomfortable...coz I know I felt weird just writing it, so I had to say something ahead of time. The rest of this story will stay with the PG-13 Rating I gave it, but this part I'm gonna say is Rated R, to be on the safe side. Alright then, consider yourselves warned!  
  
X3, Flame21, Sparkyone & Simone: Thank you guys so much for your replies! It makes this so much more fun to write!  
  
********  
  
Harper stared up at the Neitzschean for a moment, disbelievingly.  
  
"Whatever they did to you it's obviously worse than I thought," he began, warily.  
  
"It's the truth," Gaheris replied, still smirking.  
  
"It can't be," Harper insisted. "It's impossible...Gaheris Rhade's been dead for over 300 years! Hell I've seen his corpse! I was closer to it than you're standing to me right now...and you're definitely much more animated than it was..."  
  
"Yes, I've heard about that," Gaheris said ignoring Harper's comments, his tone deadly quiet. "I want very much to speak with my old friend, Dylan Hunt, again..."  
  
"You heard about that?" Harper asked pointedly. "If you're who you say you are wouldn't you have been there?"  
  
"Your understanding of the situation is not important," Gaheris said, his manner becoming serious rather quickly. "You're here for a reason."  
  
"Alright look, this is too creepy," Harper said, shaking his head. "If you're Gaheris Rhade you shouldn't be breathing! Neitzscheans may be genetically engineered but I know they don't come back from the dead..."  
  
"I didn't come back from the dead, that was avoided," the Neitzschean stated quickly.  
  
"What are you talking-"  
  
"That's enough!" Gaheris interrupted, icily. "I've told you, your understanding is not important. You're going to do what we want-"  
  
"We? Who's we?" Harper cut in, then shrinking back into his chair as best he could, as Gaheris stepped right up next to him, leaning down until their faces were inches apart.  
  
"Let us be certain we have an understanding between us, kludge," he said with an air of disgust. "There will be no more questions from you. You don't need to know anything more about me...you should be more concerned about yourself, and the task before you."  
  
"The task before me?" Harper repeated, a wry grin spreading across his face. "Has anyone ever mentioned that you might have some kinda bipolar disorder?" he asked, derisively. "Maybe you should have someone check that out, I'm sure there's some sort of medica-" he was cut off roughly as the Neitzschean's large hand clamped down on his throat.  
  
"What was that?" Gaheris asked, his eyes flashing lividly.  
  
"Sorry..." Harper choked out, and the grip loosened slightly, allowing him a bit more air to continue on in a strained voice. "Maybe that word was too tough for you...how about you have really bad mood swings, better?"  
  
"We don't have time for this, mutt," Gaheris spat, tightening his grip at once, as Harper's eyes rolled upwards, and he struggled to take in oxygen.  
  
"Are you going to listen now?" Gaheris asked after a long moment. The blonde engineer could barely nod his reply, as dark spots started to blot out his vision. The Neitzschean hesitated briefly, before releasing the grip on the small human's neck.  
  
Harper immediately slumped in his chair, gulping in air with relief, while the larger man took a step back, watching him.  
  
"What do you want from me?" Harper managed to ask when he was breathing somewhat normally again.  
  
"I've already told you," Gaheris said evenly. "The Andromeda."  
  
"What?" Harper half-laughed, his expression showing exactly how absurd he considered that statement. "You're kidding, right?"  
  
The smirk quickly left his face as Gaheris moved to advance on him again.  
  
"Alright, alright, you're not kidding," Harper said quickly, scrunching his head to his shoulders as it was all he could do to defend his neck. "Why do you need me for this though?"  
  
"Because I've been told that you know the workings of that ship better than anyone else, better even, then Dylan Hunt himself."  
  
"You've been told, huh?" Harper remarked flatly, biting his tongue against his natural impulse to confirm the Neitzschean's statement. "Care to share your sources?"  
  
"It's of no importance."  
  
"Then how do you know it's a reliable one?" Harper shot back quickly.  
  
"It is," Gaheris replied curtly. "And you are wasting my time again with your questions."  
  
"No you're wasting your time," Harper stated, heatedly. "And mine! What makes you think I'd ever do this for you? You bring me here, pretending to be someone else, make me sit in a sub-zero room for hours and then tell me that you want me to betray my friends and more than likely send them to their deaths and you think I'll agree to help you...? Whoever brought you back obviously didn't worry about the damage it would do to your brain..."  
  
Rhade stared darkly at him for a long moment, his expression unreadable, before he turned away from the smaller man, and strode wordlessly to the door. The resonating sound of the heavy lock sliding into place could be heard once more, leaving only silence in its wake.  
  
Letting his guard drop a little now that he was alone again, Harper exhaled loudly, and slumped back into the chair, uncomfortably. He attempted to move his arms again, twisting against the cords, and only grimaced in pain as the ropes cut further into his skin. It was no use, and his body was still too worn out from his stay in the freezer.  
  
Giving up his struggle as even if he could move he couldn't get out of this room, he began to wait, feeling the growing sense of dread continue to build within him...  
  
********  
  
The man on the view screen was starting to visibly sweat. He was somewhere in his forties, possibly fifties. His silver-speckled, red hair, was combed neatly away from his pale, thin face, which was adorned with a well- kept goatee. His brown eyes were anxiously flitting back and forth between the people with whom he was speaking, and he continually raised his left hand, wiping the ever-increasing perspiration from his brow. If the man had been wearing a tie, Dylan imagined he would have loosened it several times by now.  
  
"Now that you're aware of the situation," the captain continued speaking, after informing Delacroix of the recent incident, "can we expect your cooperation in our investigation? We'll want to begin searching immediately, of course..."  
  
"Yes, yes of course," Delacroix nodded quickly. "You must do whatever is necessary..." he trailed off, his eyes seeming to focus briefly on something off screen, before he quickly seemed to come back to himself. "I will have some of my people assist you with your search as well, as many as you need."  
  
Dylan and Beka exchanged curious glances, before turning back to the image.  
  
"Any help you can give will be appreciated, thank you," Dylan replied. "But there's one more issue. I'll be bringing two of my crew members who may not be received well on your planet. I'll need your assurance that they will be treated with the same respect by your people as we are."  
  
"You must realize though," Delacroix began quickly, "I cannot guarantee that the people on the streets will do the same...I do not control them..."  
  
"Understood," Dylan nodded evenly. "I was simply asking for your assurance regarding those that do work for you, we don't need another problem to add to the current situation, and the sooner we find our engineer, the sooner we'll be on our way."  
  
"I give you my word, my employees will not cause any trouble for you or your crew," Delacroix said with forced sincerity. "We'll do everything in our power to help you in your search, so you can be on your way."  
  
"Thank you," Dylan nodded. "Then I'm sure you'll have no objections to us beginning immediately."  
  
Roman hesitated for half a moment, his mouth opening slightly, but no sound coming out. He glanced in the same direction he had earlier, before returning his gaze to the screen.  
  
"Yes I agree you should start right away," the thin man stated, a strained grin crossing his lips. "We'll be awaiting your arrival in docking bay 17."  
  
"We'll be there very shortly," Dylan replied. "Hunt out."  
  
"He is definitely hiding something," Rhade remarked quietly as the screen went dark.  
  
"Yeah, you noticed that?" Beka retorted dryly. "I told you he has Harper," she continued, turning her gaze to Dylan.  
  
"Then that should make him easier to find," Dylan replied, lightly. "Though we still don't know what Delacroix could want with Harper."  
  
"He seemed quite nervous," Trance spoke up then.  
  
"And he kept looking off screen at something," said Rhade.  
  
"Or someone," Trance added.  
  
"You think Delacroix has a partner?" Beka asked, before continuing quickly. "Well that could make sense actually, the man didn't exactly give off an air of intelligence...he'd probably welcome the help."  
  
"If he has one, we'll know soon enough," Dylan stated, evenly as he stepped away from his console on the bridge. "Alright, let's get down there...and get Mr. Harper back."  
  
********  
  
As the image before him faded out, Roman Delacroix exhaled shakily, wiping his brow yet again, before turning to the man in the office with him.  
  
"This isn't going to work!" he hissed, nervously.  
  
"Calm yourself," the man replied, in his usual composed manner. "We expected this, you knew it was coming. Everything is proceeding according to plan."  
  
"Is it?" Delacroix replied, smartly. "Because that kid you grabbed hasn't even begun yet from what I've been told...what are you waiting for? They have an android coming down here! They can track things, they can-"  
  
"I'm quite aware of an android's capabilities," came the reply, from a voice that demanded attention. "Especially this android. She won't find the boy unless your people mess up, so just do your job and let me worry about mine."  
  
"I don't need you telling me how to do my job," Roman shot back, irately. "And I've yet to see any of the money you promised me..."  
  
"That is because your part in this is not yet finished. You'll have your reward when this is over, I give you my word."  
  
"Yeah sure, for what the word of an uber is worth-" Roman cut off abruptly, his eyes widening in fear, as the man took a step towards him.  
  
"You will do well to remember that if you ever utter that word again where my ears can detect it, it will be the last sound you ever make."  
  
"I'm sorry," the auburn-haired man said immediately, averting his gaze from the larger man's. "It was...I...I slipped..."  
  
"Take care it doesn't happen again," he stated, forebodingly. "Now I suggest you prepare those men whom you promised the good captain would help with their search."  
  
"Yes, you're right," Roman nodded. "I'll be sure to have them stay clear of the west side-"  
  
"No," the man interrupted calmly, "if they suspect you're trying to keep them away from a certain area, they'll center their search around that vicinity. Your men are there merely so that they can report back to you, and you will tell me everything they find out concerning the crew. Anything they overhear or witness, no matter how common or unusual it may seem, I want to know."  
  
"Fine, of course," Roman nodded, eager for the man to leave. "Whatever you think is best."  
  
The dark eyes staring at the smaller man narrowed, before he nodded briefly, and turned away. As the sweet sound of the door closing hit his ears, Roman sat back in his chair, feeling his heart beating in his chest. Why had he agreed to this?  
  
"Not much longer, then you'll have your money...soon now," he reminded himself quickly. He needed this; there was no way to skirt around that.if it meant hurting people...well...so long as it didn't come from him directly... He sighed loudly, trying to push the guilty feeling in his gut away.  
  
Standing up abruptly, he collected his thoughts, and started towards the exit. He didn't have much time to prepare his men for the crew's arrival.  
  
********  
  
As the door opened again at last, Harper looked up to see the man who claimed to be Gaheris Rhade walking towards him yet again. He steeled himself for whatever was coming, knowing it could not be good. Though he was surprised to see the larger man's hands were empty...he'd half expected him to be carrying certain instruments that most of his kind resorted to in order to get their way...  
  
"Back so soon?" he asked with mock sweetness, as the Neitzschean grew closer.  
  
"I will give you one last chance," Gaheris began, ignoring the comment, "and only one to make your decision freely."  
  
"You call this freely?" Harper remarked, incredulously. "I think you need to look that word up..."  
  
Again, Gaheris paid no attention, and continued speaking as though he hadn't been interrupted.  
  
"You are going to help us disable the Andromeda's A.I. and weapons, so the ship will be defenseless and we will have free access to all her systems. From there we will wipe the memory of the current A.I., and I will have it reprogrammed as I see fit. If you do this quickly, you may be allowed to live."  
  
Harper's expression had become one of growing bewilderment and disbelief as the Neitzschean had made his demands known, and he barely hesitated half a second to reply.  
  
"You don't get it, do you?" he asked, defiantly. "I'd fly a slipfighter into the Magog World Ship before I'd help you do that!"  
  
"Maybe I'll have that arranged for you," Gaheris remarked icily.  
  
"Fine," Harper dismissed the threat, "Do what you want, I'm not gonna betray my friends."  
  
"I see I didn't make myself clear," Gaheris stated calmly. "You will do as we ask, whether by choice or force."  
  
"Well maybe I didn't make myself clear," Harper shot back, his blue eyes flashing stubbornly as he leaned forward in his seat. "I'm not doing it."  
  
Gaheris' expression became thoughtful for a moment, as a smirk crossed his lips.  
  
"You will regret your decision," he said, almost pleasantly.  
  
"Yeah, yeah, I know this drill," Harper stated, seeming almost bored, though underneath, his heart was hammering in his chest. "Maybe your all- knowing source forgot to tell you I used to live on Earth...there's nothing you can do to me that hasn't been done already."  
  
"No he mentioned that," Gaheris smiled, finally reaching into his black vest and pulling out a metallic, cylindrical object that Harper didn't recognize. It didn't look like much, maybe about six inches long with one wide end and one flat end. The engineer only looked at it apprehensively, not wanting to imagine what its purpose was.  
  
The Neitzschean moved forward slowly, walking purposefully around the chair as Harper shifted uneasily. He was trying not to let the larger man out of his sight, while at the same time, attempting to hide the fear that was threatening to consume him.  
  
"What about this..." Gaheris spoke again finally, coming to a stop just to the engineer's right side, his dark, leering eyes fixed on one thing only, "you didn't have this on Earth, did you?" he asked knowingly.  
  
Harper instinctively shrank back, as best he could, realizing at once that the Neitzschean was referring to his data port.  
  
"I didn't think so," Gaheris said, his tone laced with malice. He brought the metal device up so it was clearly in the human's view, before lightly tapping the wide end. In an instant, a long, thick needle slid out from the center of the instrument's flat head. It was glowing a bright orange- yellow, indicating that if you were to touch it, you'd end up with a sweltering, painful welt for your efforts.  
  
Harper was more than aware now, of just how tight the cords were on his wrists, and he began trying to twist free once more. He forced himself to focus through the initial onset of panic that had threatened to overtake him, attempting to slow his suddenly rapid breathing. He ignored the sweat that was stinging his eyes, which were glued to the instrument in front of him, and knew with dreaded certainty, how hopeless this situation truly was.  
  
"Don't," he whispered pleadingly, shaking his head faintly as Gaheris stepped once again to his side.  
  
"Is that all?" Gaheris asked, his eyes gleaming with eagerness. "Where's the quick remark? The sarcastic comment? Not so talkative now, are you kludge?"  
  
Harper felt sick as he continued to look at the scalding needle in the Neitzschean's hand, having no idea what it would do to him, to his port. He remembered the last time someone had tried to put something like that inside him by force, and could only remember horrible pain. Add to that the scorching heat that was so fierce Harper could smell it...  
  
Snapping back to himself for a brief second, the small engineer turned his hateful glare onto the looming Neitzschean.  
  
"Screw you, uber!" he spat vehemently, knowing nothing he said or did would avoid him the pain that was coming, so he had no intentions of going quietly. "I'll never betray my friends!"  
  
Gaheris' eager expression didn't falter as his left hand shot forward, roughly grasping a handful of the human's blonde hair and forcing his head back harshly; the smaller man winced in pain.  
  
"We'll see," the Neitzschean quipped carelessly. Harper didn't reply as he slammed his eyes shut, his heart pounding so fiercely he felt it in his throat.  
  
Feeling the intense heat nearing his neck, the engineer swallowed hard, his mind racing frantically for a way out of this, but none presented itself, and he was out of time.  
  
Gaheris hesitated, seemingly enjoying the human's reaction for another moment more, before he viciously jabbed the needle into the sensitive port.  
  
Harper's face contorted with anguish, and there was no hope of holding back the tortured screams. The pain was fierce and relentless, more severe than anything he could remember feeling before in his life.  
  
Immediately upon the needle's insertion, a white-hot flash of agony seared through Harper, traveling directly from his port into the circuitry that connected it to his delicate neurons. They exploded in seconds, as their protective outer sheathing melted away, leaving nothing but raw nerves for the pain to dance upon. It continued on ruthlessly, deeper and deeper into his brain.  
  
As the pain quickly reached his optical center, a blinding white light was sent to replace Harper's already blurred vision; his ears were ringing with the sound of his own screams, and the sound was magnified ten fold as those nerves, as well, were attacked by the razor like agony.  
  
When the sweltering pain finally hit and began to travel down into his spinal column, Harper hadn't thought he could scream any louder, but the pain reached excruciating heights as the very fluid that lubricated his brain felt as if it were on fire. The muscles in his arms and legs began to contract involuntarily, as his body was plunged into the throws of a seizure. Feeling his chest start to tighten, and having trouble drawing in his next breath, Harper gritted his teeth, wishing for death, praying to the Devine for it, in fact, when without warning, he felt the needle being pulled out.  
  
There was relief, but not much, as his body continued to convulse harshly. He was vaguely aware of angry voices around him, when he felt the cords being loosened from his wrists. The second he was free, he fell forward in the chair, having nothing now to hold him up, and no strength of his own left. Large hands grabbed him before he came into what would undoubtedly have been painful contact with the floor; though his vision had yet to return, and he had no idea who now held him.  
  
Shaking violently, feeling consciousness slipping away like water, Harper groaned in anguish as he felt himself being lifted by this person, before he was set down gently on the room's only table. He was fading fast, and his eyelids were drooping heavily, when he heard a voice that struck immediate recognition in his tortured mind.  
  
"Harper, can you hear me?" came the familiar deep voice, which was currently filled with concern. Harper tried to reply, but his body refused to cooperate, as he only slipped further away from consciousness.  
  
As the darkness finally welcomed him to join itself in feeling nothing, Harper gladly followed, with only one name going through his mind...  
  
Tyr... 


	4. Some Answers, More Questions

OKAY, WARNING UP FRONT…FORMATTING FOR THIS SITE IS HATING ME RIGHT NOW, I HAVE NO IDEA WHAT YOU GUYS ARE GONNA SEE, BUT IF IT'S COMPLETELY UNREADABLE I'LL TRY TO FIX IT SOONISHLY…

Alright then…wow, sorry for taking so long to update guys, and unfortunately, this chapter won't be all that long.  Everything just got very busy these past couple weeks…but I have no intentions of giving this up, so no matter how long I might go without updating(which shouldn't be any longer than two weeks most of the time), I promise there'll always be one coming until this is finished.  

Okay, now that that's been said, I also have to say thank you guys SOOOO much for the reviews!  They totally make my day and I appreciate that you all take the time to say something, no matter what it is, so thank you to Parisindy, Callie-Cat, Simone, Sparkyone, Starfish, Iorekbyrn, Harley, X3, Ginger and CrashDifferent ~ you guys rule! :D

Okay, now onto the next, chapter…sorry again that it's so short…

"That's it," Rhade gestured to the building just ahead.  "That's where we took shelter."              

"Well then that's where we start," Beka replied, quickening her pace as they neared the dilapidated structure.  

When the crew had arrived planetside once more, Roman Delacroix had been waiting, as promised, with several of his personal guards ready to help with the search.  He'd excused himself rather quickly, however, claiming he was quite busy and, regrettably, couldn't stay.  Beka had serious doubts over how much the man actually regretted leaving, if his ever-increasing anxiety was any indicator; he looked as though he couldn't wait to be away from them.

Dylan decided it wouldn't be safe to split into anymore than two groups, as he didn't want anyone alone, even with the guards.  He and Rommie had started towards the southern part of town, while Beka, Rhade and Trance took the northern part, nearest to where Harper was last seen.  Beka didn't care what it took, if they had to go town by town until they'd covered the entire planet, she was getting Harper back.  Whoever had him, was going to sorely regret their mistake.

"They were firing at us from over there," Rhade spoke again, explaining the situation from earlier that day.  "And Harper and I entered through here," he continued, leading them to the doorway.  

They entered the building, followed closely by two of Delacroix's guards, who had yet to even attempt to speak.  The men stood indifferently, simply following their employer's orders, but seemingly considering it a waste of time. 

"Just down here is where I found his gun," Rhade said quickly, walking a short distance to the right from the entrance.  "There were no other signs of a struggle, however.  No weapons fired."

"Well signs or not," Beka began, "Harper would've contacted us by now if he could've, and if he'd gone anywhere willingly, his gun would've gone with him…" she paused, her attention drawn a bit further down the hall.  "Trance?  Find something?" she asked, seeing the gold-skinned alien kneeling near the corner of the passageway.  

"This would explain why there are no signs of a struggle," Trance stated solemnly, standing up and turning to face the others.  Beka and Rhade drew closer to see the empty metallic injector she held in her outstretched hand.  

"Someone wanted him to go quietly," Trance spoke again, looking grimly at the small device.  

"And that someone is going to regret the day they were born," Beka seethed angrily, her hands clenched into fists at her sides.  

"It explains why there aren't _many_ signs of a struggle, yes," Rhade began quickly.  "But _no_ signs?  It seems unlike Mr. Harper that he wouldn't fire at all."  

"Maybe he didn't hear the person coming," Trance suggested.

"Or persons," Beka added and Trance nodded.  

"It's possible," Rhade admitted.  "There was a lot of gunfire, but it didn't last long after I left Harper's side.  As soon as I was prevented from getting back to him, it stopped."

"Well the attacker could've made his move before then," Beka replied.              

"He could've," Trance agreed.  "But it doesn't seem likely.  It sounds more as though whoever was after Harper also wanted to be sure Telemachus wouldn't be able to stop him.  They probably would've waited until they were certain the two were separated."  

"But then Harper should've heard the person coming," Beka argued.  

"So why didn't he fire?" Rhade asked.  

"I don't know," came Trance's simple reply.  

The three exchanged perplexed glances with one another, before Beka sighed in frustration.

"C'mon," she said quickly.  "We should at least check out the rest of this place before moving on."

Trance and Rhade nodded their reply as the small group set off up the hall, followed closely by the silent guards.

********

The comfort of nothingness was slipping slowly away.  Harper moaned in pain as he gradually regained consciousness, and immediately wished he hadn't.  His whole body felt as if it had been slammed repeatedly into a brick wall, and his head was throbbing in agony.  He could feel the softness of a mattress beneath him, glad for the small comfort at least.  

Barely willing his eyelids open, he instantly clenched them shut again with a grimace of pain crossing his features as the brightness beyond them stabbed at his vision.  It was then that he heard the voice again, followed by the sound of nearing footsteps.

"Harper?" it questioned quietly, with a hint of concern.  "Can you hear me?"  

Harper tried sluggishly to raise his hands to his head, visibly cringing as he rolled onto his side.  

"Stop…" he managed to get out, in a weak, raspy whisper.  "Please don't shout…" he trailed off, once again trying to open his eyes.  This time he was ready for the ensuing brightness, and squinted against it, but refused to shut it out.  After a few seconds, he was able to open them further.  The white, sterile room that surrounded him resembled a med bay of sorts.  

"You're going to be in pain for a while, I'm afraid," the voice came again, and Harper's gaze moved slowly towards its origin, his eyes widened as they found the voice's owner standing just beside the bed and looking down on him.

"Tyr…" he whispered, shocked into awareness.  

"Nanobots have already been injected into your system," Tyr continued, calmly, lowering himself into a nearby chair.  "Though it will take some time before you'll feel any of their effects."  

Harper barely heard his words, however, still not sure what to make of what he was seeing.

"What are…how did you…I…I thought you were dead…" he stammered, the words catching in his dry throat as he tried to sit up, but immediately regretted it.  He brought a hand up to his mouth, as his body was racked by a sudden coughing fit.

"Try to relax, you're not well enough yet," Tyr warned him, his voice remaining even as he reached for a glass of water from a nearby table.  He held it to the small engineer's lips, helping him to drink.  

As the fit subsided, Harper slumped back against the soft pillows beneath his head, but his now suspicious eyes never left his former crewmate.  The events of late had been slowly returning to him since he'd awoken.  He remembered the freezing room, then meeting the man who believed himself to be Gaheris Rhade…and worst of all, he remembered the torture from which there had seemed no escape, but after that, he could recall nothing…

"What do you care if I'm well enough for anything?" Harper asked finally, a venomous undertone to his question.  "You're working with him, aren't you?  That psychopath who thinks he's Gaheris Rhade…"  

"I am," Tyr nodded impassively.  "Though I did not choose him as a partner, and while he may seem to be…unbalanced, I assure you he is who he says.  The man you met is Gaheris Rhade."  

"Tyr, that's impossible…" Harper argued.  "We both saw the real Rhade…or what was left of him…"  

"You yourself just finished saying how you thought me to be dead," Tyr replied.  "Yet here I am."  

"Yeah but…that's different," Harper said, suddenly uncomfortable with the discussion.  The Andromeda crew and their former ally hadn't exactly left things on the best of terms.  "I never saw your…your body…after what happened…  Plus it hasn't been over 300 years since then…"  

"Well you and your brave captain left in such a hurry," Tyr began, his tone somewhat scornful.  "How could you have seen anything that happened after…?"  

"You didn't give us much of a choice!" Harper shot back angrily, wincing unexpectedly as the sharp pain in his head escalated for a brief moment; but it died down just as quickly, and he continued on with as much strength as he could muster.  "You would've killed Beka…you would've let the Abyss have her, right along with the rest of us if you had your way…"  

"But instead I was shot by Captain Dylan Hunt off the edge of a cliff."  

"Well what do you want from me Tyr, an apology?" Harper asked, scathingly.  "Don't hold your breath…you would've done the same to him if you had the chance…" 

"What I wanted, was the Route of Ages," Tyr spoke evenly.  "But that time is passed.  I want something else now…"  

"So I've been told," Harper muttered angrily, turning his gaze away and glaring stubbornly up at the ceiling.  He wished his head would stop pounding; simply lying there talking seemed to be draining all of his energy.  

Tyr looked at the small human for a long moment, his expression unreadable, before finally speaking again.  

"I am not after the Andromeda for the same reasons as Gaheris," he stated quietly.  "If I wish to obtain my own goals, however, I must do as our employer asks."  

"What?" Harper asked, confused, and suddenly more interested as his blue eyes focused again on the Neitzschean.  He vaguely remembered Gaheris mention working for someone as well, but at the time, he'd been too concerned with other matters to pay the comment much attention.  "Employer?  You're working for someone that wants you to steal Andromeda?"  

Tyr simply nodded.

"Well…who is it?" Harper asked, impatiently.  

"You mean you haven't figured it out yet?" Tyr asked with a mixture of amusement and bitterness in his tone.  "I should have died when I fell over that cliff's edge.  Yet here I am…"

"The Abyss," Harper interrupted, his eyes going wide as realization suddenly dawned on him, and he shuddered involuntarily.  "You're working for it…aren't you?"  

"I had little choice…it was that or death," Tyr responded emotionlessly.

Harper opened his mouth to say something, but closed it again quickly, having no idea how to even begin a response to that statement.  Was he sorry?  He hadn't exactly been opposed to Tyr's death ever since the Neitzschean had betrayed them…but being forced to work for the Abyss…Harper wasn't sure he wished that on anyone…

"So it lets you live, and in return you…deliver the Andromeda." Harper said quietly.  

"For the time being, that is all, yes," Tyr shrugged with the obvious air of someone who's had experience with those who don't feel the necessity to keep their promises.  

"What about Gaheris?" Harper asked, glad for the distraction as the throbbing in his head continued relentlessly.  At least someone was actually answering his questions.  "Why…how…is he here?"  

"You already know how," Tyr replied.  "You've used the technology before, granted, it didn't go exactly as planned…"  

"You mean the…the tesseract machine?  The one that was used to…"

"Remove your magog larvae, yes," Tyr confirmed.  "The Abyss, however, has a much better understanding of how to use the technology; to fold time and space.  When you were constructing the machine, we merely had glimpses from the past and future, people appearing, but disappearing soon after.  They were really there, we just couldn't keep them there."

"Except Trance," Harper interjected.  "She stayed…the older, shinier Trance, I mean…"

"Yes, well…I believe she has always understood much more than she ever let on," Tyr stated.  "She knew she couldn't stay without switching places with her younger self."  

"So then, if the Abyss took Gaheris from the past…" Harper began, "Wouldn't that change things?  He wouldn't have been there at Hephestis to-" 

"As I understand it, the Abyss cannot use the technology to alter timelines," Tyr interrupted.  "I'm not certain what exactly was done when Gaheris was taken, I was not present at the time, so I can think of only two possibilities.  Either Gaheris would have to have been taken just seconds before his death, or if he was taken earlier, an exact replica of his being would need to take his place."

"Cloning Gaheris Rhade," Harper mused, clearly disturbed.  "Now there's a terrifying thought to keep you awake at ni-" he was cut off abruptly, stifling a small cry as another sharp pain flared up, and it felt for a brief second, as it had when the needle was in his port.  He could feel sweat breaking out across his brow as his vision blurred and he shut his eyes tightly, trying to fight off the sick feeling rising in his throat while his stomach flipped slowly.  

"Don't fight it," Tyr's voice spoke calmly, "You're going to continue feeling these pains for a few days at least, the only thing you can do is simply relax and let it pass."

"Yeah…easy for…you…to say…" Harper managed to get out through clenched teeth.  His whole body was tense with anguish, and his back was involuntarily arched in response to the agony.  Simply taking in another breath was difficult and painful, and Harper felt tears from the pain stinging the corners of his eyes…when suddenly the feeling dissipated.

Slumping back weakly against the pillows once more, Harper struggled to get his breathing under control.  He was barely able to raise a shaky hand to wipe the moisture from his face, and gratefully took the cloth that Tyr now held out to him.  

"You should rest now," he stated evenly.  "You'll need your strength for tomorrow."

"My stre…tomorrow…what?" Harper asked, his mind slowly comprehending what the larger man had said.  He tensed slightly as realization hit him, and he shook his head.  "No, Tyr.  I already told your psychotic partner that I wouldn't do it.  I meant it, I won't help you take the Andromeda."  

"I'm sure you must realize, I don't control him," Tyr said, his voice full of warning.  "He would've continued your treatment for much longer had I not intervened, and I will not be able to hold him off for long if you don't do as we ask."  

"I don't care," Harper spat, a defiant sneer crossing his features through his exhaustion.  "And don't worry yourself about it…I'd never ask you to screw up your chances of achieving more of your power hungry goals by helping me, no no, wouldn't dream of it…"

"Good, because I have no intentions of doing so," Tyr replied, leaning forward slightly as he went on; his eyes narrowing.  "Make no mistake boy, I am not your ally.  Dylan and the others can't find you, believe me, they have been trying.  You can't escape, and you will regret it if you try.  I suggest you make this easier on yourself and do what you've been brought here to do."

Harper glared angrily at the Neitzschean, but inside his heart sank.  He didn't even know exactly how long he'd been here…how long had his friends had been searching?  He wondered also, how long they would continue to do so before they simply gave up.  The thought made his stomach twist, as right now, he didn't see any way out of this predicament.  He was outnumbered, had no weapons, no knowledge of his surroundings…not to mention he wasn't feeling all that well at the moment…

"Why me, Tyr?" he asked finally, somewhat bitterly, as his intense blue eyes remained locked on the Neitzschean's brown ones.  "If you wanted the Andromeda you know her systems well enough, Gaheris probably knows them too…"  

"You and I both know that your knowledge of the ship's systems surpasses that of the rest of its crew, both former and present.  We needed someone that would be able to knock out specific systems without causing damage; someone that could take control of any and all aspects and reprogram as we see fit.  You've also shown in the past that you can hide yourself from the A.I.'s presence, something that will more than likely be useful for what you need to do-"  

"It's great how you keep talking about this like I'm actually going to be doing something," Harper interjected loudly, pushing himself up as best he could and resting on his elbows.  "Neither of you seem to get it, I don't care what either of you does to me!  I know you'll just kill us all once you have control anyway, so I'm not gonna drag my friends down with me!"

Tyr slowly sat back in his chair, as Harper remained utterly still, seemingly waiting for him to strike, but what he saw instead, sent an involuntary shiver down his spine.  A sly smile spread across the Neitzschean's face and his eyes gleamed coldly.

"I know you won't," he acknowledged, with a hint of malicious amusement.  

Harper tensed further, as the larger man then rose from his seat, but he didn't come closer.  Instead, he turned and made his way towards the room's only exit.  

"Take my advice and get some rest while you can," Tyr called out offhandedly, without so much as a glance back.  "You will need it."

As the lock on the door was clearly heard sliding into place in the silent room, Harper let out a defeated sigh, relaxing somewhat as he once again laid back against the pillows.  He wondered briefly, if there were any rooms at all in this place without a lock…

His thoughts shifted quickly to the conversation that had just taken place.  Harper found it hard to believe that for several minutes, he and Tyr Anasazi had once again been having a discussion that could be described as civil.  He wrestled with the idea that it was only because he wanted to believe that was the case, that he could still trust Tyr…to a point, anyway, but he shook that thought away in the end.  He had allowed himself to temporarily forget the fact that he wasn't in this place by choice…a fact that he would not overlook again.

Without warning, another razor-sharp pain seared through him, running straight down his spine.  Harper cried out in anguish, arcing his back in involuntary protest, and quickly brought his hands to his head, helpless to do anything other than wait for it to pass.  The seconds seemed to tick on endlessly, and flashes of blinding color were going off relentlessly behind his closed eyelids, when at last, it began to fade again.  

Harper laid where he was for a long moment, drained, exhausted and breathing heavily, before weakly rolling onto his side as he tried to will the sick feeling in his gut away.  His blurry vision wasn't helping matters any, and he shut his eyes tightly against the partial sight, wondering how frequent these little episodes would be.

However, he had little time to think on it, as it wasn't long before his worried thoughts began drifting away, and he could feel the heaviness of sleep take a claim on him.  He tried to fight it at first, partly thinking he shouldn't just be lying there, he should be looking for a way out, but the rest of him was having none of that.

Feeling both uneasy and ill, Harper at last surrendered to his losing battle with consciousness, and fell into a deep sleep.


End file.
